Arkansas Tech University will mark its 90th season of intercollegiate men’s basketball this winter. Few of those previous 89 seasons have started with higher expectations than the ones that have been placed upon this group of Wonder Boys.

Ranked as highly in preseason polls as No. 9 in the nation at the NCAA Division II level and tabbed as preseason favorites to win the Great American Conference title, Arkansas Tech will begin its journey tonight with a non-conference game at Northeastern State University.

Tip-off at Jack Dobbins Fieldhouse in Tahlequah, Okla., is set for 7 p.m. The game can be heard over KWKK 100.9 FM and athletics.atu.edu.

The Wonder Boys’ high hopes for 2012-13 are in part rooted in the success the program has enjoyed in recent years.

Four consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, four consecutive 20-win seasons, three regular season conference titles and three postseason conference tournament championships over the past four years have transformed the once moribund Arkansas Tech men’s basketball program into one of the top D-II men’s basketball programs in America.

But the cause for excitement around Arkansas Tech this men’s basketball season is as much about the present as it is the past.

NCAA Division I transfers such as Paul Cooper (Texas Tech University), Jeff Reese (Murray State University), Willie Kirkland (Coastal Carolina University) and Alan Jones (Troy University) could help the Wonder Boys overcome the loss of five of their top seven scorers from last season.

Cooper, who made the Dean’s List both semesters in 2011-12 while he redshirted at Arkansas Tech, stands 6-foot-8 and 240 pounds. Add in a legitimate 7-footer in Charles Mells --- a transfer from Coastal Bend College --- and returning 6-foot-10 center Will Paul, and the Wonder Boys will be among the biggest teams in NCAA Division II in 2012-13.

“I think it was evident on day one of practice that our talent level has increased,” said Arkansas Tech head Doug Karleskint, who is 51-12 in two seasons as the Tech head coach. “There is a big difference in the size of our basketball team and I think we’ve increased our athleticism some, but at the end of the day it’s still a bunch of new guys. There are a lot of guys that have never been in our system before, and a lot of them don’t know the standard we have here or the expectations we have for ourselves. We’re just trying to grind it out every day, improve our players and help them mesh together.”

Arkansas Tech’s top two returnees are senior Jared Williamson of Russellville, who averaged 12.1 points per game last season and was most valuable player at the 2012 GAC Tournament; and Paul, who averaged 10.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game in 2011-12.

“Will has had a preseason full of injuries,” said Karleskint. “He’s probably about two months behind from a conditioning perspective, but on the floor he seems so much more relaxed than he was this time last year. We’ve just got to get him to the point where he can play for longer periods of time without a rest.”

Northeastern State (1-0) opened the season with a 78-73 win over Northwestern Oklahoma State on Monday. The RiverHawks made 11-of-24 attempts from 3-point range in the win.

“We have to contest their shooters because they have some guys that are returning and shooting the basketball with confidence,” said Karleskint. “It’s going to be a challenge because (NSU head coach Larry Gipson) coaches them so well and they are so disciplined on the offensive end. We’re going to get screened about 1,000 times, but we have to be tough and get through those things.”